I chose to feature 4 dishes here made up of shrimp, potatoes, mushrooms, and snap pears. However, you should feel free to mix and match. The beauty of tapas is being able to have a mish-mash of items, as if you're at your own mini-buffet. So if you have other favorites but some of these sound good put them together. This is especially great when you have company over since tapas lets you offer a variety. If someone's a picky eater they simply eat the other dishes!
Time: 30 minutes (pieces are less but you can't do it all at once!)
Difficulty: easy
Patatas Bravas
Time: 15 minutes
Patatas Bravas are typically deep fried potatoes served with a spicy garlic sauce. They're one of the most common and traditional dishes you'll find at tapas restaurants and they are absolutely delicious. However, you'll see below that I make them significantly healthier, tossing deep frying for pan sauteing, and also lighten up a bit on the spice factor although I keep the garlic portion strong.
Ingredients
2 lb potato cut into 1 inch cubes
1 tbsp butter
3 tbsp olive oil (divided 2 and 1)
1/2 tsp salt
1/2 tsp black pepper
4 garlic cloves, minced (divided 2 and 2)
3 tbsp onion, diced
2 tsp paprika
1/4 tsp Thyme
1/2 cup ketchup
1/2 cup fat free mayo
The ingredients above are for the potatoes themselves as well as the sauce, but we'll start with the potatoes. Wash your potatoes and cut them into 1 inch cubes. I leave the skin on but you can peel them first if you prefer. Put them in a saucepan and cover with water. Bring to a boil and boil the potatoes for 2 minutes so they are crisp-soft. Drain them well.
Heat the butter and 2 tbsp olive oil in a pan over medium high heat. Heat for 45 seconds as it gets foamy and swirl the pan to coat it entirely. Add the drained potato to the pan and cook for 8-10 minutes. Stir only occasionally, 2-3 times throughout the time, so the potato can get browned and crisp. Add the salt, pepper, and 2 minced garlic cloves. Stir well and saute for another 2 minutes. Eat them immediately when they're hot! (See sauce below to time correctly.)
As the potatoes are cooking you'll want to get the sauce ready so you can eat immediately. Heat your remaining 1 tbsp olive oil over medium heat in a different pan. Add the onion and other 2 minced garlic cloves. Stir frequently and cook for 5-7 minutes or until onion is soft and translucent. Turn the heat off and add the Thyme and paprika. Then remove the pan from the heat and immediately stir in the ketchup and mayo. You can add a sprinkle of salt and pepper as well to taste. Serve with the potatoes as a sauce.
White Wine-Garlic Snap Peas and Mushrooms
Time: 15 minutes
I actually prepared the snap peas and mushrooms in the same fashion so I will put them together here in the recipe. You can choose to make them separately or together. While the mushrooms are the more traditional dish, I wanted to add some veggies so I tossed in snap peas as well. Here they are prepared together.
Ingredients:
1.5 cups mushrooms, washed and sliced
1 cup snap peas, washed and ends trimmed
6 garlic cloves, minced
1.5 tbsp olive oil
3/4 cup white wine
That's right - a short list of ingredients. Wash your mushrooms and snap peas and cut them appropriately. Heat the olive oil in a pan over medium to medium high heat. Add the garlic and saute for 1 minute, stirring constantly. Then immediately add the mushrooms and snap peas, stirring well. Continue to stir fairly often and cook for about 5 minutes. Then add the white wine and stir well. Cook for another 5 or so minutes or until the mushrooms and snap peas are soft and a bit of the wine has cooked off. Serve immediately.
Garlic-Whiskey Shrimp
Time: 10 minutes
This is an approximation of the famous garlic shrimp recipe properly referred to as gambas al ajillo but you'll see that I make a few substitutions! To be fair, I didn't intend to use whiskey but realized I did not have cognac or sherry after already starting to cook. Feel free to be more authentic by subbing those back in instead.
Ingredients:
1 lb shrimp, peeled and deveined
4 large cloves of garlic, minced
2 tbsp olive oil
1 tsp paprika
1/4 tsp red pepper flakes
2-3 oz whiskey (sub cognac or sherry)
1 tsp lemon juice
I start by removing the tails from my shrimp but you could also cook them with the tails on if you prefer.
Heat 2 tbsp of olive oil in a pan over medium heat. Add the garlic and red pepper flakes and saute for 1 minute, stirring the entire time. Add more pepper if you like your shrimp spicier than I do.
Raise the heat to medium high and add the shrimp, paprika, whiskey, and lemon juice. Stir frequently and saute for 3-4 minutes or until shrimp turn pink and curl up tight. Remove from heat and eat immediately. This tastes especially well when served with fresh baguette.
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